AC Carrie Revelations

by Sage1988

The aftermath of Brotherhood has the team shattered and worried for Desmond who is on a journey inside the Animus. All the while in other areas of the world the war between Assassins and Templars continue as new people enter the struggle.

Disclaimer = I do not own Assassin's Creed or Carrie

Hello again, sorry this is so late but I had some things happen in real life that slowed me down. Thank you to those that have read these stories since I started posting them.

This one was a bit difficult to do since I have never played this game but I have tried to integrate the two as seamlessly as I can.

This will bring in other characters from the wider Assassin's Creed lore and move the saga towards its conclusion.

On with the story…

Revelations

Two Weeks Later...New York Assassin Safe-House…

The weather today was rainy and overcast, making the outside look uninviting and deary.

Not that the inside was much better.

Desmond lay there in the Animus attached to drips that fed him intravenously while the Animus kept his mind as active as possible. Hannah hadn't moved much from his side since Rome and was looking very tired and drawn from all the worrying.

Shaun and Rebecca came in and looked at her with worry, she hadn't slept much and ate sparingly. They were worried too but knew she needed some rest.

"Hey, we can sit with Desmond if you promise to get some rest and something to eat." Rebecca said to Hannah who looked ready to object but Shaun interjected.

"Yeah, no buts. You need food and sleep Hannah." Shaun told her with a stern look in his eyes. "You are doing no good just sitting here and getting sick."

Hannah wanted to argue but honestly couldn't find the strength, she got slowly to her feet, a little unsteady and sighed as she looked back at Desmond. Her worry for him clear for all to see.

However, before she could leave another person entered the room, the air instantly became more tense as his presence seemed to fill it up.

Much older than any of them he was in his early fifties or late forties it was hard to tell, his face was stern and his eyes cold and cunning. He had more or less taken over within moments appearing the room.

"Any change?" The man asked, his voice clipped and strong. Rebecca answered.

"No... not yet."

William Miles stared at the unconscious form of his son, even now he was staring impassively even though it was his own flesh and blood. Perhaps there was the slightest softening of the eyes but blink at the wrong moment and you would miss it.

"Have the others reported back yet?" Shaun asked, referring to Rita, Carrie and Sue. William turned to him and stared him down.

"No, but given I am currently directing not just a concentrated effort against the Templars but also recovery efforts I may have missed a single message from a single team. I suggest you go check." He told Shaun who went to do just that before he turned to Hannah and with a stern voice told her. "And you get some rest, you might not be operational right now but I expect you to be ready to go on a moment's notice."

"Yes sir." Hannah said, biting her tongue to stop her lashing out at William's lack of caring for his own son, not mention sending half their team to the other side of the world.

---

Rabat, Morocco...Same Time…

The day was very hot although the cool sea breeze did help somewhat. Moving by day was still dangerous but they had little chance given who they were tracking.

"I have him on the cameras." Sue said, sitting in front of a bank of computers in the safe-house, looking at the hacked security footage of their target. "He's just entering the club now."

"Copy that." Rita and Carrie said together from their positions inside the club. Rita was sat at the bar nursing a drink which she never drank, Carrie meanwhile was sitting a small way off nursing a drink of her own. They watched a man in a suit entered the club, their eyes studying his face to make sure he was the one they were after. Confirming it was they waited while the man met with the proprietor of the club and was taken into a room at the back.

"Right, Carrie move into position while I create a distraction." Rita ordered quietly.

"Copy." Carrie said with a lot more confidence than she would have weeks ago. Moving to stand close by the doorway the target had gone through while Rita got up and started walking around the room with her drink in one hand, humming to herself.

While she did this she also dropping small smoke pellets all around the room that soon started emitting grey smoke throughout the room.

The patrons of the club all started panicking when they noticed the smoke rising around the room and the staff soon moved to see if there was a problem while Carrie used the distraction to slip past them into the room at the side.

Activating her eagle vision to see through the walls she saw two bodyguards standing near the door while the Templar and the club proprietor sat at a desk in the centre. She forced down any anxiety or fear and kicked open the door. The wood caved in with the force of her kick, breaking the lock and bursting open. She threw a smoke bomb inside and watched as it exploded. With the room filling with smoke Carrie put on the small respirator and goggles she had been given and used her eagle vision to see through it while the Templar and other men floundered, trying to find a way out of the choking smoke.

Carrie moved into the room and with surgical precision planted her blade into each one of the four men and grabbed the briefcase that was now glowing gold in her vision. Walking out through the smoke until she reached the front door and slipped around the fire fighters that had arrived to find the source of the 'fire'. Rita was waiting for her just ahead next to a nearby alley and quickly she took off the googles and respirator and stuffed them in her pocket before walking across the street to the alley where Rita nodded after giving her a quick look over and the pair climbed up the side of the building onto the roof.

Scaling the building was almost like second nature to the pair now, easily getting up to the flat roof and looked out across the city before running along them and leaping the small gaps between buildings to make their way away from the club with their prize and the mission complete.

- x -

A short while later and winded a little from running in the baking midday sun, Rita and Carrie arrived back at the small loft safe-house. Sue opened the shutters and let them in, giving them both a much-needed drink of water as they sat down to rest.

"Mission accomplished." Sue said with a smile which was returned by Carrie who was still holding the suitcase.

"Making sure they can't use underworld financiers to start their recovery and gain more influence is tedious work but still important." Rita said as she took the case and carefully opened it to see the papers inside. Scanning them quickly she nodded in approval before adding to Sue and Carrie. "Excellent work, both of you. Now get some rest, we have jet back to the States tomorrow and we can't miss it." She told them.

"Any news on Desmond?" Sue asked with a worried look on her face, Carrie to looked at their mentor who only frowned.

"No change I'm afraid. We know his mind is still active but little more than that. Now both of you get some rest." She told them with maternal concern and they both nodded. Rita went to report their success to the Network while Sue and Carrie, now alone spoke in hushed whispers to each other.

"When we get back, we'll continue to explore Altair's memories. I've nearly caught up to Desmond and we need more clues on whatever the Precursors were warning us about." Carrie said with a determined voice.

"Carrie, I really don't like this. Using the Animus so much could really hurt you." Sue said, her face tense with worry as Carrie had been intensely using the animus at every opportunity to try and explore more memories, nearly as much as Desmond before his coma and she really didn't like having to hide this from the rest of the team and especially Rita.

Carrie however was unaffected by her worries, determined to not only find the secrets of her ancestors but perhaps some trace of what had happened to her father. Seeing that the now showing her baby bump Sue was concerned Carrie did her best to reassure her.

"I am feeling fine, maybe my higher-than-normal Precursor DNA gives me more resistance to the effects of the animus. But I feel fine." Carrie said, her smile now much more confident than the young girl that had left Chamberlain, what seemed like a lifetime ago now.

Sue was surprised at the change in her and wondered if the Animus was actually affecting her behaviour in ways she just didn't realise or maybe this Sue thought later as they all tried to sleep was this the real Carrie...the one that was in charge of her own destiny and finally finding confidence in herself.

---

Prison, Texas, United States…

In his cell sitting on his bunk Cal was feeling depressed as the letter in his hands meant the end of his latest attempt to appeal against his coming execution. Still, he thought with some hope there was a few years yet to appeal but not a single appeal had been granted yet and he had no idea just why. Many criminals who had had much more violent and bigger death counts than him were not given the death penalty yet he had.

That confused him and more than once wondered if someone in some office somewhere had a grudge against him. Cal did his best not to dwell on it though, he instead had his next appeal to plan.

A ringing bell announced the next meal period, Cal reluctantly got up from his bunk and left the letter there as he walked out of his cell. He walked down the corridor, keeping his distance from the other prisoners to avoid getting shanked which happened fairly frequently. Due to him being on death row he had little interaction with other prisoners here as per the warden's orders but that didn't mean someone wouldn't have a go at him.

He saw a skinny looking guard walking up the corridor going the opposite way. He didn't know all the guards here but he knew most of them by sight and he had never seen this one before. That didn't matter much to him though and Cal continued on his way, assuming the guy was just new. As the guard brushed past him at a fairly fast walk Cal suddenly felt a sharp prick in his arm.

He stopped to look and saw a small red spot on his forearm, he turned around to look at the new guard who just kept walking like nothing had happened. Cal knew that the guards would never believe one of their own had stabbed him in the arm nor would they care either way. He considered going to the infirmary but it was just a little jab and he decided to ignore it and continue on.

However, as he did so he felt himself slowing down, his legs and arms seemed to become much heavier and his breathing seemed to be harder. He stumbled, not able to stand suddenly and looked around at everyone who continued walking past like nothing was happening. He tried to get one of them to pay attention and some of them did stop to look but no-one either guard or prisoner moved to help as the world for Cal turned dark.

- x -

"What the hell happened?" The Warden of the prison demanded with an angry voice as the doctor looked the body of one of his prisoners. His guards who were all tough men normally shrunk away from the tall and broad man who had such a loud voice it seemed to make them turn into kids again.

"We don't know sir." One of them said nervously. "People said he just collapsed."

"Just collapsed?" The Warden said with angry disbelief and looked ready to beat the two former soldiers to death with his own fists but one of the paramedics interrupted, a man who looked foreign to their eyes with brownish skin and a dark black short beard.

"Look." The man said with a good American accent the Warden approved of at least. "We'll find out what happened the moment we get him to the city morgue. Let them deal with it."

"Sure, just get him out of here." The Warden said with a desperate dismissal as he went to find an excuse, something he could use to explain what had happened here. The paramedics moved the body of Callum Lynch onto a gurney and zipped up the body bag before they started wheeling him out.

They walked right past all the security checkpoints without being challenged and soon exited the prisoner where an ambulance waited. In the driver's seat was an Asian woman in her late twenties with the same paramedic uniform on, she waited patiently while her two colleagues loaded up the gurney and waiting for them in the back was the same guard that had stabbed Cal. The moment the doors were closed the Ambulance drove off and went right passed the last checkpoint and out onto the open road.

"We're clear, no traffic we should be at the airfield in twenty minutes." Lin said from the front seat while Nathan took off his guard's uniform and discarded the injector he had used.

"So, is he good?" Nathan asked, knowing the memories this guy had were important but hadn't liked having to break into a prison to get them.

"Yeah, the drug is working fine. He'll should wake up after the flight to Venezuela." Emir said in his paramedic uniform as he unzipped the body bag so if Cal did wake up during their flight, at least he wouldn't be trapped inside it. They had a safe house already set up where the rest of their team, the Animus and Joseph were waiting. It was nice and remote not to mention outside the United States legal reach if anyone discovered that Cal was alive.

Moussa who was shrugging off his own paramedic disguise looked down at Cal with curiosity before asking him quietly.

"Whose side will you choose Pioneer?" He asked although Cal in his current state couldn't answer. "We'll be watching you; we need to see who you are. When you meet him...when you make the choice, will you send us all to infinity?" He asked with a little concern on his slightly crazed face. The others ignored it with practice having known him awhile but they too held similar fears.

---

Layla Hassan's Flat, Egypt…

Layla was looking through the situation in Egypt and doing her best to educate the country's youth on using social media to communicate and organise protests not to mention hack devices so they could break through the heavy censorship here. She was in some ways really enjoying helping people find more ways to express themselves and fight for their freedoms but at the same time was starting to wonder if they were really accomplishing anything and if things won't get worse for the same people she was trying to help.

Still, it wasn't in her nature to give up though and she hoped that any problems were mere setbacks and kept on working.

Suddenly there was a loud thumping on the door, Layla turned around with a mounting sense of dread as she wondered just what could be waiting on the other side of that door. She had been hacking government databases and while she was sure they couldn't have traced it back to her that could be them right now. She slowly got up from her desk and crept slowly towards the window, looking out to see if anyone was waiting for her out there but saw no one.

However, the hammering on the door continued, Layla was about to take her chances and slip out via the window when a surprisingly familiar voice sounded.

"Layla! Open up! Come on please!" Deanna Geary or just D said, sounding very urgent from the other side of the door. Layla rushed over and opened the door. The moment she did Deanna came rushing in and shut the door firmly behind her.

Her pretty blonde hair was looking dishevelled and her face was flushed but it wasn't just from the heat of Egypt. The look of fear on her face was evidence of that. Layla was now worried especially as Deanna grabbed her in a hug.

"Oh, thank god, I thought they might have gotten to you before I did." Deanna said with a look of relief on her face. Layla was confused although her earlier thoughts about the government came back to her and wondered if she might be right on that.

"Who's might have gotten to me? D, what's going on?" Layla asked with concern and Deanna frowned before trying to explain.

"It's been chaos at Astergo since that big leak a couple of months ago. A lot of internal shifts and everyone is really on edge. I found these internal memos and files from the upper management floating around the database and the next thing I know my apartment is being monitored and men with guns are after me!" Deanna said with a look of near panic on her face. Layla was struck dumb by what she had said and wondered what the hell D could have seen that would merit that kind of response.

"What about Sofia? Surely, she could..." Layla said referring to the one leading member at Astergo that they both knew but Deanna interrupted.

"They were from Sofia. Turns out all this talk of some secret order running Astergo to try and rule the world is true." Deanna said with a look of desperation on her face. "I found some of their actions to cover up or bury some of their dirty laundry and the next thing I know they are trying to kill me."

Layla was stunned to hear that; she had heard the rumours that the company was run by some secret group but she had put that down to just conspiracy theorists gone crazy...that it might be true and whatever Deanna had found was worth killing over. Layla could hardly believe it.

"Some of them mentioned you too." Deanna continued which only surprised Layla even more. "Turns out Sofia and her staff have been taking credit for a lot of your ideas and keeping you from being promoted or put on the Animus research team so they can keep exploiting you. They think you're too unpredictable and transgressive to be trustworthy and while you can be exploited you need to be kept at a distance." Deanna said looking angry on Layla's behalf for the last part.

Layla herself was stunned that her former friend and mentor's words, it was like a hammer blow to the heart and honestly, she could hardly believe it until Deanna pressed a wad of paper printouts into her hands.

Layla took the printouts and found the memos and emails that Deanna had talked about and was deeply hurt as she saw Sofia's eloquent words in each of the messages saying that she was too much trouble to be trusted but could be useful for her genius. She felt her heart was breaking as all those promises she had been given, all that encouragement was just a lie to let Sofia leech off of her to boast her own credentials.

"What else did you see?" Layla asked for a moment, wondering just what else the company had to hide and Deanna looked scared before telling her.

"They've been having people killed Layla! Just to try and ease the pressure against them! A lot of other dirty stuff too! They nearly got me in the States if the Assassins hadn't reached me first." Deanna said with a worried crinkle of her forehead.

The mention of Assassins instantly worried Layla as she had no idea just what the hell Deanna had gotten herself involved in but she explained with urgency.

"Turns out the group that really runs Astergo, the Templars...yeah like the knights have been trying to rule the world but they have a rival...the Brotherhood of Assassins. They might be scary but they got me out of America before the Templars found me and they are offering us both sanctuary from the templars!" Deanna said with a look of desolation on her face at the fact the life she had known was over, for her and for Layla.

"Deanna, this is crazy!" Layla said with a lot of worry.

"They have labelled us both as hazardous and need to be terminated to prevent us becoming a threat since we go off books so often not to mention some of the sensitive stuff I accessed." Deanna told her and handed her more papers so she could see what she was talking about.

Layla read the words and saw the coldly written command from Alan Rikkin and Juhani Otso Berg that both she and Deanna were to be killed rather than let them fall in with the Assassins. Layla felt her stomach turn at the death sentence that was now hanging over their heads and Deanna, looking nervous glanced at her watch and told Layla with a lot of insistence.

"Layla come on we have to go! Every moment we spend here the closer they get." Deanna said and Layla frowned with indecision before running over to her wardrobe, pulling a big bag out and throwing some clothes, keepsakes and her laptop into it before both of them fled the building.

An hour later a Templar squad raided that building but found no trace of them.

---

Templar Safe-house, Unknown Location…

Alan Rikkin read the report from Egypt and was frustrated by another failure...a common pattern of late he thought with anger.

He looked at the information and saw to his disappointment that Astergo was continuing to decline, their efforts to check its fall was to say the least marginal in their success. He sighed as he considered the problems he was faced with and wondered just how to stop this trend or if they should just take whatever resources they had left and start again. Retreat back into the shadows and rebuild.

But that he realised would be the work of a lifetime at least, probably more. Rubbing the bridge of his nose with exhaustion he sat at the table and wondered if there might be some way to accomplish their goals.

"We need the apple." He said to the rest of the inner sanctum who had gathered for the meeting. "Either one of them would do at this point. Double our efforts to find Desmond Miles and get Callum Lynch out of prison immediately whatever it takes. Either one might just might be enough to turn the situation in our favour." He said but Isabelle Ardent scowled at him.

"Not going to happen. Lynch is in the wind." She said with a cold finality that shocked them. "He was supposedly killed but his body disappeared on the way to the morgue so either the Assassins have him or his corpse so he is out of reach. Not to mention no trace of Desmond Miles...we are rather short on resources right now and can't afford to waste them on fancy plans." She snapped at him. "I am more interested in discussing the fact that your daughter has turned out to be nothing more than a fraud...taking advantage of one Layla Hassan to make improvements to the Animus while keeping the credit."

Sofia looked down in disgrace, her secret rumbled and worse now that advantage had been taken from her. Layla had disappeared and who knows where she was now as was Callum Lynch. Both had been important for her own personal goals for different reasons and their loss was a true set back. She sighed, not really wanting to argue but her father gave Ardent one of his most cold and ruthless glares.

"Yet my daughter has proven a far more effective Templar and Scientist than you Ardent, unless you want her to replace you, I'd advise keeping your nasty inside voice to yourself." Alan said and Isabelle while full of bile and scorn a moment ago faltered at the intensity of his glare and went back to being quiet.

While Sofia was glad of her father's love for her, she was annoyed that he wouldn't let her fight her own battles.

Alan turned to Daniel Cross and Juhani Otso Berg and told them sternly.

"We may have only one last attempt at the satellite plan, it could well solve all our problems and achieve many of our long-term goals. I am assigning you both to find it, to find Desmond Miles and retrieve not only him but his cousin since we can afford to take no more chances and more critically find the Apple." Alan said sternly and the two men nodded.

"We understand." Daniel said with a grin on his face, he was going to enjoy this.

---

The Black Room, the Animus…

The weird landscape Desmond found himself in was strange, a blend of what seemed like reality like the island and virtual constructions like the enormous pillars hovering in the sky. He could feel the ground beneath his feet but when he moved it was more like he thought to do it rather than actually physically moving. There was no wind or sound beyond the footsteps he made.

It had been a very confusing and somewhat frightening thing at first, he had not known what was happening or how to get out of it. He wandered the beach, lost in his thoughts again till a figure appeared suddenly, sitting on a rock.

"Just walked right passed me didn't you." The man said and Desmond was struck by recognition, even though he had never met this man before in his life had seen his face on a computer screen.

"Sixteen?" Desmond asked with confusion since if he remembered correctly the man had killed himself in Astergo to stop the Templars from getting Ezio's memories which is why he had been brought into their plans. Sixteen looked annoyed at being called by his subject number and instead said with scorn.

"No. They didn't tell you my name?" He said with mocking smirk.

"So, I am still in the Animus?" Desmond said with frustration at his suspicions being confirmed. Sixteen walked around a bit and told him.

"Quite a shock you suffered out there?" Sixteen said and Desmond, eager to be out of this place called out.

"Rebecca...get me out of here." Shouting out to his new tech friend but Sixteen told him with a sudden seriousness.

"They can't help you Desmond, you're a broken man. Your mind, it's broken." Sixteen told him.

Desmond was surprised by that as he didn't feel like anything was wrong and said so.

"Broken? I feel fine."

Sixteen then stepped forward and suddenly appeared right in front of Desmond's face, smirking and laughing as he said.

"So did I. Look at me now."

Desmond was so surprised that he fell backwards but Sixteen offered a hand to Desmond and said.

"Let's talk buddy."

Desmond reluctantly took it and was helped by Sixteen to his feet and followed him as he walked further up the island. Sixteen explained as they walked that this was indeed the Animus but a very basic test version that had no memories, just basic physics and weather simulations.

"You're lucky someone up there had the smart idea of plugging you in here. Saved your life." Sixteen said and Desmond was confused as how he got here was a little hazy.

"Saved it from what?" Desmond asked.

"Right now, you should be sitting in a hospital bed, drooling and biting on your tongue. For now, the Animus is keeping you intact." Sixteen told him. "Keeping all of your ancestors from collapsing into one big mess. But if you can't find a sync nexus, all those personalities will smash together and that won't be pretty." Sixteen warned him.

Desmond now becoming quite alarmed at this was regardless more confused than ever and asked.

"Sync Nexus?"

Sixteen sighed with irritation at being interrupted and told him with a firm snap.

"I'm getting there, hold on. There." He said before going to sit on a nearby rock. Pointing at a large gateway ahead of them. "That is your way out."

Desmond was confused and not able to believe given how things had been that anything could be that easy.

"You're kidding right?"

Sixteen on his rock was looking annoyed at being continuously questioned but regardless pressed on.

"Look, here's the problem. Your brain is packed…too many ghosts in your head, to many voices. So how do you fix that?" Sixteen said looking sternly at him so he didn't interrupt. "You claw your way back into the stored data, you find the unfinished memories and you crack them open. Finish what you started. Until your ancestor has nothing left to show you. That is a sync nexus and when you find it, the Animus can separate you and Ezio and Altair and send you home. Back to your body." Sixteen explained.

Desmond was still really confused and asked Sixteen.

"How do you know all this?"

"Because it happened to me." Sixteen told him before getting off his rock and spoke. "But my body is worm food now, so I'm stuck here."

Desmond, now seeing what he needed to do stepped forward towards the large gateway, Sixteen however had one last thing to tell him.

"One word of warning, when you step through there, everything changes." Sixteen told him with an exaggerated wave of his hand. "Nothing feels normal, but you're still in control. It's up to you to find a way out."

"Right." Desmond said and then without waiting any longer he plunged into the gateway.

- x -

After he had gone through the strange gateway, he had realised just what Sixteen, no Clay he thought finally remembering the man's proper name had been trying to tell him.

"Incredible. This must be the core of the Animus. No simulations, no environments. I can't even feel my own body." Desmond realised with some disconcerting feelings and at least a little relieved to know just where he was and what was happening.

He had no idea if he was even real any-more, Desmond thought with confusion. The information that surrounded him was just raw data, had some ghost of him left in the machine become self-aware he thought with a strange panic filling him.

Wandering through the strange landscape he found few answers only more questions although on the wall of one of the strange chambers he discovered there was a familiar sight.

"Home, I was born here." Desmond said to himself, hoping to make sense of it all. "The Farm. Yeah. They called it the Farm. My parents, two dozen couples, some kids. A community. Hidden away." Desmond said with a smile as he remembered some of the more pleasant parts of his childhood and found the community had been ready to move at a moment's notice in case the Templars found them although he hadn't understood that at the time.

Continuing on through the maze Desmond felt a sense of mourning at the realisation that he had never actually had a chance to be anything else. He had never had any choice...the Assassins, he had been born into it. It was his reluctant birth right, told that he was an assassin over and over and over again even if to this day he had no real idea just what that meant, what the Creed had stood for, repeated over and over again.

"Nothing is true." Desmond heard in his mind again, this time in his father's stern voice.

'What did that mean?' Desmond thought with confusion and irritation at this same bullshit again. A world without purpose?

"Everything is permitted." His father's voice continued to the next line; Desmond really confused by that line. Everything is permitted?

As he continued on through the maze Desmond heard more of his father's words only this time with his warning...one that had been said to him and all the other children from the moment they were old enough although most of them, Desmond included had never known just what they meant.

"They're looking for us. And they will not stop until every last one of us is dead."

Desmond like the other children had believed it at first even if he had never understood just who they were hiding from. He had not had any other world or ideas beyond the Farm, that was the problem with the being born into something. It was not a choice, belief without understanding.

The adults had always been strict and spoke of the Assassins and Templars, many were even scared of it all too. Of the end of the world, he thought with a sense of foreboding as it seemed far more real somehow these days.

"Live by the Creed Desmond." His father's voice said again, urging him. "Empower yourself."

As he continued on through the maze, Desmond thought back to the days when he had stopped believing...had stopped listening after finally hitting his limit. When exactly that had happened, he couldn't even remember now, it seems so long ago. He had thought it all so stupid...so ridiculous that it couldn't possibly be true. He had laughed at the mention of Assassins and Templars.

He had starting thinking the whole thing was ridiculous, he thought with a sense disgust at his own naivety. An ancient war. One that had been going on for thousands of years and would likely never stop. He had never cared and yet now it was his entire life. The Creed, the one he had abandoned was now reluctantly his.

He wished that he had spoken up, told them how he felt rather than run away. Maybe if he had they would have spoken to him...shown him how important it was and in a way that made sense to him but he had never done that and instead chosen to flee from the situation only for the Templars...the monsters of those old stories to appear and drag him into the reality that his parents had been trying to prepare him for. He wished he could say sorry to them both...for not understanding or listening when he should have, for not speaking up when he should have.

When he finally exited the maze, he was ready, jumping straight into the memories of Ezio when he in 1511 he had gone to the former Assassin Stronghold of Masyaf.

---

New York Assassin Safe-House…USA…

The flight had been long but at last Rita, Carrie and Sue were back in the States. The sights of New York where somewhat familiar to Sue having seen them on TV or the Internet despite never having been here in person before. Carrie of course had never seen anything of the enormous city and was staring with awe at all the huge buildings that towered around them.

Rita however had been to the city before and travelled too much to be awed by this place any longer and was all business as they drove into the safe house. With the car hidden they entered the old brownstone type house the assassins owned here. It was a decent place and far better than most of the places they'd been too.

Shaun and Rebecca greeted them at the door. Both looked relieved to see the three of them return safely.

"Hey guys, how was Rabat?" Rebecca asked as she came forward and hugged each of them in turn.

"Hot!" Sue said with a sigh of relief to be in a more tolerable climate. Carrie to sighed and could almost feel the burn of the hot sun like they were back there.

"Have much fun?" Rebecca asked her young student but they could only stare before Rita answered.

"Afraid not, but we got the documents and eliminated the targets." She said handing them over to Shaun who flipped through them quickly.

"Well, pretty bog-standard stuff...financials, plans etc. but it will put the Templars back step that's for sure." Shaun said with a small smile.

Rita nodded, wishing she had more to show for it but the sight of a cold figure standing at the top of the nearby stairs made her stop and a scowl appear on her face.

"William." She said with her voice and face tight with dislike. William Miles might be their leader now but that didn't mean she had to like him nor would he have cared whether she did or didn't.

"Rita, finally found your sense of duty at last?" He said walking down the stairs towards them. The look of condescension on his face did not make the situation any easier.

"Never lost it, I just needed time to come to terms with all the friends and people we lost." Rita said with a bitterness, that he felt he had the right to judge her! She thought with anger barely controlled running through her veins.

"Hmm." William said with a raised eyebrow which only made Rita want to hit him more. Sue, Shaun and Rebecca all stared uncomfortably at the two before William turned to Carrie.

Carrie with her telepathy could feel his curiosity about her, even as he looked her over from head to toe and the strength of his conviction was almost overpowering, she thought almost light headed as it came off him in waves. He was studying her intently, wondering if she was going to be an asset to the cause or not which was a little off putting for her. Besides Desmond he was her only family since she had no real way of knowing if her father was still alive and here her uncle was wondering if she could be useful?

Carrie was put off by that, wanting to blast him with her telekinesis before squashing that urge and looked him in the eye. He stared back and spoke.

"So, this is the niece you have been keeping so secret." William said with a look of annoyance. "While I have always wondered what happened to my brother somehow, I didn't think marriage and a child would be a part it." He said before saying. "You did well in the missions given to you so far but I will expect you to be consistent in the future."

"She will be herself! Not your puppet!" Rita said storming forward with her face contorted with fury. She was shorter than William but put herself between them and glared at him without fear. "God William she is your niece! Is nothing sacred to you?!" Rita snarled at him and he looked at her with disdain.

"Stop being a child." He chided her. "Everyone has to pull their weight! If she's not going to be a fighter in this war then she's a victim. A burden to the Brotherhood." William said with annoyance.

"QUIET!" Carrie shouted suddenly, her emotions unsettled and around them things started trembling from the intensity of her feelings. The others looked around with worry and William, merely raising an eyebrow looked at Carrie with suspicion. "I DON'T NEED YOU TO MAKE DECISIONS FOR ME! EITHER OF YOU! IF I WANT TO GO ON MISSIONS I WILL! IF I WANT TO EXPLORE THE REST OF ALTAIR'S MEMORIES I WILL!" Carrie said with her temper rising.

The words hung in the air and at last things stopped shaking as Carrie's initial temper evaporated. That was largely at the look of shock on Rita's face. The reason for it however was not that Carrie had shouted, it was what she had unintentionally revealed.

"You've been using the Animus?" Rita asked her looked suddenly fearful. "Behind my back?"

Carrie suddenly felt very what was left of her anger leave her and be replaced with fear at the look of betrayal Rita was giving her, the disappointment in her eyes.

"I thought we trusted each other, Carrie." Rita said with a shaking of her head. "I guess I was wrong." Rita then started walking away from her and Carrie honestly was so unsettled and all her previous confidence seemed to desert her as her mentor and perhaps even parental figure walked away. She wanted to call out but found her words frozen in her throat.

- x -

Hannah sat at Desmond's side again as the team reeled and struggled to get themselves together again. Sue came in with a sweet tea and a meal, Hannah wasn't really in the mood to eat but her stomach was growling to remind her it needed feeding. She took the tray from Sue and spoke.

"Thanks." Hannah then started eating while keeping her vigil on Desmond. Sue looked at her with concern.

"I can stay with him awhile; let you have a break." Sue offered and Hannah while grateful shook her head.

"I'm fine." Hannah said trying to smile but the result was brittle and you could tell she wasn't especially with the bags under her eyes. Sue, years younger than Hannah nevertheless took her hand and told the tired looking Hannah.

"We will get him back; he is still in there."

"Is he? The longer he is like this the more likely he is going to stay like this forever." Hannah said with a misery look on her face, no longer hiding how she was feeling.

"He will, trust me. Now go get a shower and sometime in the sun, you look a mess." Sue said, doing her best to give the other woman comfort and Hannah sighed before eating the rest of her meal and doing as Sue had told her. She turned just before leaving and gave Sue a small smile which Sue returned.

- x -

A few days passed awkwardly as they all went about their business, William and Rita were often gone from the house or cloistered in one of the rooms attending to their own business.

Carrie had not seen either for days and the longer she went without seeing Rita, the worse she felt. She had known Rita would not approve of her going into the Animus and now wondered just how to explain why without saying a strange ghost lady had told her too. It sounded silly just to say it like that but while she did hope it would eventually give her a clue to just what had happened to her father was it really worth her relationship with Rita? Carrie asked herself, her father had abandoned her when she was just a baby and left her with her mother and all the pain, she had suffered there had been at least partly his fault.

Rita had lifted her out of that misery and given her the confidence and skill to take control of her own life and do things for herself if she wanted.

Carrie felt guilty and was confused about what to do. She was coming out of her bedroom and into the living room when suddenly there was a loud shout.

"SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Rita, Sue, Rebecca, Hannah and Shaun all cried out and she was so stunned that she nearly dived for cover, her instincts making her think it was an attack but she just blinked.

"Birthday?!" Carrie asked in confusion, she knew what one of them was but why were they shouting that at her? She thought to herself. The group looked surprised themselves for a moment.

"Oh, come on Carrie, today's your seventeenth birthday! Surely you knew that." Rebecca said with astonishment.

"My birthday? Mama never told me." Carrie said with discomfort as she realised perhaps for the first time that she had never actually known just what day she was born on. She had of course never been invited to anyone else's birthday party so she had never known how it was so important.

"Well..." Hannah said, horrified by that and how neglectful Carrie's mother had been for the girl to not even know her own birthday! Sue herself who had always celebrated her own was likewise horrified. Shaun took a calming gulp as he suppressed his own less than charitable feelings towards Margaret White and explained.

"Well Rita thankfully knew because she read your school file. Your mother did apparently tell them when you were enrolled."

Carrie looked at Rita who while still angry at her gave her a sad smile. Carrie was touched and wanted to say something before they all rallied their party spirit.

"Anyway, you've got presents!" Sue told her with a smile and handed her a brightly wrapped box.

Carrie took the box and carefully opened the present, taking great care not to damage the pretty paper which only made them all smile before seeing inside a fitted black and red leather jacket. Carrie smirked at it in an amazement before taking it out of the box and holding it up. It was easily the most amazing piece of clothing she had ever owned and she quickly slipped it on. It fitted her perfectly and took a moment to admire it and how she looked in it.

"Looking good." Rebecca said with a smirk and Carrie, now smiling herself told Sue with complete honesty and a beaming smile.

"Thank you, it's the first present I've ever gotten." Carrie admitted and while they all hated that fact; they carried on so Carrie could enjoy her special day.

Rebecca and Shaun had both gotten clothes for her too, some nice new jeans and t-shirts which she duly thanked them for before being handed a much smaller box by Rita who gave her a small smile. Carrie honestly was worried that Rita had given her a smaller gift because she was still angry with her. Carrie was unable to keep the worry off her face as she carefully opened the box which could fit in the palm of her hand. She gasped when she a beautiful locket inside, looking to be made of gold Carrie picked it up and gently as possible opened the small piece only to sniffle as a tear fell down her face.

Inside the locket was a small picture of her father, his smiling face peering out at her. She closed her eyes with emotion as she held it like it was the most precious thing in the world. The others just stayed quiet as she was so emotional, she couldn't speak. It took a few moments for her to manage to say something.

"Thank you." Carrie said and Rita just smiled and leaned forward to give her a hug which Carrie eagerly returned, sensing that Rita wasn't really angry at her and never had been...just disappointed.

"No more secrets." Rita whispered in her ear and Carrie replied in agreement.

"No more secrets."

"Now, the birthday girl gets her cake." Rebecca said before she rushed over and brought over a fair-sized cake which had Carrie's name written on in icing and seventeen candles on it. "Blow out the candles and make a wish Carrie, don't tell us what it is because it won't come true." Rebecca told her.

Carrie closed her eyes and made her wish before blowing out the candles. They cheered and Shaun told her.

"Since the Templars are after us, we can't really go out anywhere but while we are here...we thought we might watch some movies together. We picked some out and we can watch them all while enjoying some pizza and cake." He said with a smile, before handing her a pile of slim plastic cases that she knew contained DVDs. "Your party, you pick first." He told her.

---

Assassin Hideout/Ranch, Venezuela...

Callum Lynch was groggy when he started to regain consciousness, his head was hurting like the worst hangover you could imagined, he groaned and opened his eyes to a dazzling light that hurt for a moment till his eyes began to adjust.

"Here." A man's voice said, pressing a few tablets into his hand and a bottle of water into the other. "It'll help."

Cal as he tried to gather his senses was struggling and desperate to ease his aching head so he took the pills and drank a nice cool sip of the water. It took a moment but slowly the headache began to ease and his eyes adjusted. He now could see a man with short greying hair, African-American with a wide smile but guarded eyes. Cal was instantly on edge especially as he saw this was not his cell nor any prison hospital he could imagine.

"Where am I?" Cal asked, his head still hurting a little and wondering as he looked out a nearby window to see a much greener landscape outside than he had been expecting. He was certainly not in Texas he thought with surprise and wondered just how long had he been out?

"A little place we call home, it's in Venezuela so don't worry about the cops finding you pioneer." The man said with a slightly odd look that Cal found off putting. The knowledge he had been taken out of the US was both a welcome one as it meant he was far from his potential execution but realised that if these people had brought him thousands of miles after breaking him out of prison, they would certainly want something in return.

"What do you want from me?" Cal asked insistently. He was already estimating how long it would take him to escape out the nearby window but the man just smiled. Then three more people appeared at the door. An Asian woman in her late twenties to early thirties, a man of Turkish descent and an older Caucasian man with a suit and cane that looked to be in charge.

"Easy Mr Lynch. We just need your help, spend some time in the animus and we will furnish you with a new identity and free passage to wherever it is you want to go." The old man said with a cultured English accent. "I am Benjamin Scott and these are my associates, Moussa, Lin and Emir. There are others present but you will meet them in time. We removed you from prison as there are others that kept you there and ensured your sentence so they could use you for their own purposes." Scott said with a cold and emotionless face.

Cal was already thinking this was too strange and that made him uneasy.

"And if I refuse?" He asked, ready to fight if he had to but there were more of them than him and they were between the window and him. Scott and the others seemed to regard Cal carefully before telling him.

"Then you may leave, you are not a prisoner here but we hope you will stay. It will be easier with a new identity and travel, not to mention new skills that you will acquire here. We represent the Brotherhood of Assassins, the same body to which your mother belonged. And your father." Scott said.

That immediately stopped any intention Cal had of making a run for it. He still to this day could see his mother being murdered by his father and then being told to run, not understanding why.

"My father murdered my mother! Was that on the orders of the Brotherhood?" He asked, already tense and now becoming agitated.

"She asked him too." Another voice said, much younger than anyone else in the room. They all turned to see a teenage girl with a notebook in hand. She had very strange but intense eyes and she seemed to study him for a moment before walking over. The others tried to stop her but with an agility that was hard to follow she slipped through all their fingers until she was standing in front of him.

"Lara." Lin said with warning but Lara just kept staring at Cal who himself was uncomfortable at how ancient her eyes seemed to be despite her apparent youth. It was almost like she could see straight through him.

"The ones called Templars wanted your mother for the memories she carried in her blood. The same ones you carry as her son and to prevent her capture she told your father to kill her. If you want to understand why, then assist us in the Animus and you will see for yourself." Lara said with intelligence and wisdom that did not seem truly human.

"Why would I help you when my mother lost her life because of you?" Cal asked fiercely reaching out to the girl to grab her shoulder but she with the grace of a lifelong dancer eluded his hand and kicked him with a high arc knocking him to floor with surprising strength. The others barely blinked but did look ready to intercede on her behalf. Lara, seemingly unaffected by all of this told him simply.

"Because you want the answers to why, why was she and your father willing to give up their lives to stop the Templars from finding out what her ancestor knew. To know what she knew, we won't force you but I know you will do it just to see for yourself what is so important." Lara said before walking out of the room as calmly and as silently as she had entered.

Cal and the others looked after her and frowned, there was something strange about that girl and damn her she was right. He did want to know why, why his mother had apparently been ready to give up her life and asked her husband to help her. He did not doubt her words which he found very unsettling as he had no real reason to not to so but he thought with annoyance...he would do it just to find out the truth.

---

Assassin Safehouse, New York…

Carrie was sitting on the sofa of the safehouse with the others watching a classic movie that she had never heard of before but was really enjoying, her eyes glued to the screen. It was called Back to the Future and it was one of Shaun's favourites.

"So, this man Dr Brown builds a time machine and the boy Marty uses it to go back to the 1950s by accident." Carrie asked with amazement as she had never seen anything like it. Shaun nodded with enthusiasm while they continued to watch.

Honestly although she had never had a birthday party before and knew this wasn't really how a lot of people did celebrate their birthday, she would never want to do it any other way! She was sitting down with her best friends and people who cared about her eating delicious cake and pizza which she had never had before, enjoying not only being entertained by the movies but just having them with her.

They'd watched Singing in the Rain and the Wizard of Oz before Back to the Future and still had Goldeneye and Groundhog Day to get through. She was glad and enjoying the day so much she hoped it would never end.

---

Assassin Hideout/Ranch, Venezuela...

Cal was familiar with the Animus; he had stolen Animus software to sell to rich kids with far too much money and too little sense.

However, he had never actually used it himself before and was somewhat nervous as he didn't know what to expect.

Cal was however a little underwhelmed, having expected more than a rather weird looking red and white chair alongside a bank of computers connected to a laptop. He knew it was a vast improvement though over what Astergo had given he had seen their bed like device when he stole the software from them.

"Ready when you are." A blonde woman with a rather serious face said as she sat at the computer and he was a little put off by her really. She was beautiful he thought but so cold it would scare a lot of people.

"Let's get this over with." Cal said with a deep calming breath and sat in the chair. He saw Moussa sitting nearby with a wide smile on his face as he heard it start up. He was seriously thinking all these people were insane but was broken from this as memories, almost like a dream invaded his mind.

He saw the dusty and harsh land of Spain as it had been centuries ago, in the middle of the Granada Wars and the Spanish Inquisition.

- x -

Hours Later…

When finally, the session ended, Cal was removed having just witnessed Aguilar trying to save Prince Ahmed from the Templars to ensure they could not use the boy to force his father give up the Apple he was guarding. The shock of the experience was almost enough to make Cal tremble with the feelings and adrenaline that was running through him. He looked around almost expecting Templar soldiers to be coming at him but instead he could swear he saw Aguilar looking at him from the corner of the room but he blinked and it was gone. He saw Moussa smiling at him and told him in his weird way.

"Well done, Pioneer, it hurts less when you don't fight it. Trust me on that." Moussa said with a knowing smile and offered a hand to the still unsteady Cal who reluctantly took it and helped him to his feet.

"While we do some recalibrations we'll need to power down till tomorrow." The blonde woman said with a thick Russian accent and Moussa said with a nod.

"Thank you, Niska. Come let's go get something to eat. You must be starving."

That was the moment that Cal did realise he was really hungry having not eaten in a fair while. So, he followed Moussa who led him out of the Animus room and down a rather old and dusty corridor.

"Niska has over three centuries of heritage in her veins, all explored by the Templars when they forced her into the Animus. She's as tough as nails and as cold as ice but never will you find a braver and more dedicated fighter." Moussa said with a smile. Cal wondered just how long Niska must have spent in the Animus to get through so much history and what effect that would have on someone.

"And you?" Cal asked with curiosity.

"Baptiste." Moussa said. "Been dead over two hundred years now, Voodoo poisoner. I'm harmless." Moussa said with a smile that creeped Cal out a bit but nevertheless they kept on walking.

Arriving in a large single room Cal saw some small tables had been placed next to each other to make one long one and nearly twenty people were sitting around it. Some he recognised from earlier like Scott, Lin, Emir and Lara but many he had never seen before.

"Take a seat pioneer." Moussa said as they walked in Cal getting a little annoyed at him being called that, everyone turned to face them when they did and it was a bit unnerving but they soon stopped and turned back to what they were doing. Lara however gave him a warm smile which he couldn't help but do the same as he and Moussa took a seat.

Two girls in their late teens who could not be more different were serving what looked like some kind of spiced rice dish. Moussa did not hesitate to tuck in and neither did the others while Cal waited uncertainly for a moment before doing so himself. While he had no idea just what it was, he could admit it was very good and filling.

"Thanks Dhriti, Sophie." Moussa said with a genuine smile. "Excellent as always. Come on." He said gesturing to the places opposite him and Cal. The two girls did as they were bid and smiled as they sat down to eat their own meal.

"Hi." One of the girls said, the London accent recognisable. Cal nodded and noticed she was pale with thick dark brown hair and warm features. "I'm Sophie, this is Dhriti." Sophie said with a friendly smile while other girl who looked Indian if Cal had to guess nodded in a more guarded way. He wouldn't have thought either of them could be assassins at first glance, both should be partying or studying in college he thought with annoyance at their future being taken from them. He honestly blamed the Brotherhood but Sophie with her warm smile interrupted him.

"So, you liking the animus? We've all been in it but at least you get to choose." Sophie asked him as he ate her own rice. Cal was confused by that till a young black guy on a nearby table spoke with an accent that Cal didn't know.

"None of us did Sophie, just take regular breaks to orientate yourself now we have control over our sessions and you'll be fine." The man said absent-mindedly as he ate his meal. Cal looked between them and Lara who had been until now silently drawing in her book answered.

"Ibrahim, like all of us was kidnapped and held prisoner by the Templars in Madrid. Granted they didn't manage to get all of the memories since they had to work on us slowly but we all forced into it. Without any breaks." Lara said without a single care.

All around the table, everyone even the hardened Benjamin seemed to go into a bad memory and shuddered a little. Cal immediately realised that these people hadn't had a choice but to go into the Animus even Lara who had to be in her early teens if that.

"Sorry." Cal said, not sure who too maybe all of them. They all were grimacing for a moment before Sophie told Cal.

"It's not you, we all lost the lives we had before this. The Brotherhood...that gives us a purpose and something to believe in." Sophie said with a sadness.

Cal could well understand, he had drifted for a long time without anything as a child and as an adult. He still wanted to confront his father over what had happened but at least he could understand them better now.

---

Altair II, Mediterranean Sea…

Layla was thankfully not the sort of person that got sea sick, Deanna was not so lucky and was taking longer to get used to being on a boat. Especially one that belonged to the Assassins.

Layla could still hardly believe all this, that Astergo had been a front for an evil secret society that wanted to rule the world, her former boss and mentor had been using her all this time and now she and Deanna were both marked for death and their only hope for survival was to join the Brotherhood of Assassins.

Brotherhood, Layla thought with dismay. How had it could to this? She thought and could only rub Deanna's back to try and comfort her as the boat moved away from Egypt.

"We have some pills that can help if you want them?" A man told them, he had greying hair and wore a denim jacket with jeans but had a friendly face.

"Please!" Deanna said with desperation which only made Layla redouble her efforts to give her some support and comfort. The man smiled before handing Deanna a box of pills and a bottle of water, she wasted no time in taking some in hopes of easing her sea sickness.

"Give it awhile, you'll get used to being on ship eventually. I'm Gavin Banks." The man said and extended his hand to Layla and Deanna. They both shook it before Gavin told Layla.

"We have a lab set up for you. I know we haven't got the resources the Templars had but we'll do what we can." Gavin said and Layla, her excitement at finally being able to work on the Animus made her smile.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I was thinking I might have found a way to make the unit portable and that maybe we can process the memories off a single DNA sample. It could take a bit but I think we can do it." Layla said with eagerness to get to work. Gavin's eyebrow raised but he nodded in approval, ambitious but it opened a hell of a lot of possibilities for the Assassins if she could do it.

"I'll look into the data we found, it seems to indicate a high priority target, possibly two somewhere in Egypt, a tomb probably. Mentions the Hidden Ones…whatever they are." Deanna said, still a little green but seemed to be getting better as the tablets kicked in. Gavin suddenly became very serious and asked her.

"When around were these targets?" He asked with a strange intensity and Deanna answered.

"Around fifty to forty BC give or take why?" Deanna asked, wondering what had caused Gavin's sudden change in mood. While she and Layla looked on confused, he explained.

"Because the Hidden Ones is the original name for the Brotherhood of Assassins and that is roughly the time they were founded. If what you say is true then we could be looking at founding members of the Brotherhood itself." Gavin said with awe, they had so many questions about how and why the Hidden Ones had been founded but had resigned themselves to never knowing the full story. Maybe this would finally give them those answers. Before getting carried away though he turned himself back to the present and told them.

"Either way, welcome aboard." He said welcoming the newest crewmembers to his ship.

---

Assassin Safehouse, New York…

A couple of days after Carrie's birthday the routine of living in the safehouse resumed, they trained they monitored Desmond and generally did their best not to attract attention.

Hannah had resumed her vigil over Desmond, she held his hand was again refusing to leave his side except for moments when she fell asleep and they would put her to bed.

The others all watched with concern for them both but also with knowing looks passing between them, all of them had noticed how close Hannah and Desmond had been getting and in some ways Rita, Shaun and Rebecca were glad as it meant that maybe Hannah was finally getting over what had happened with Daniel but also worried that losing Desmond would destroy her.

As Rebecca continued monitoring Desmond's vitals which were thankfully still stable while Sue helped her, the girl might only be a couple of months into her pregnancy and was barely showing yet but still Rebecca didn't want for Sue to exert herself too much. So, while they sitting there to monitor everything, she asked her a question.

"Have you thought more on whether you are going to go into the Animus when you've had your baby? I mean you can get some awesome skills from Jacob and Lydia." Rebecca asked and Sue, stopped for a moment as she considered it. She had seen Desmond and Carrie both go into the Animus so she knew what might happen to her if she did. Truth was she was torn as she wanted to be able to protect her baby but at the same time, she worried what having those memories might do to her. Would she even care about her baby when they were done? She thought with worry.

"Sue, I really don't think you should." Rita said from the other side of the room where she and Carrie were working on maintaining their hidden blades. Carrie looked at her with a frown as did everyone else. "The Animus can change you." Rita added as she readjusted her blade.

Carrie meanwhile was close enough to Rita that she could feel fear radiating off of her, not just for her and for Sue too about going into the Animus but also near terror at the sight of the machine itself. She was confused at first and asked her.

"Why are you so afraid of the Animus?" Carrie said, Rita looking up at her in annoyance at Carrie using her powers on her. Hannah though was the one that answered.

"Because of who is waiting for her in there." Hannah said with a sigh. "Shay is waiting in there and she is afraid of what might happen if she experiences his memories. That's why she doesn't want you guys going in there either, she's scared of you getting hurt."

Rita was shocked for a moment as was everyone else, she looked at Hannah before her expression changed to of hurt.

"I told you that in confidence." Rita said looking betrayed at Hannah who only told her.

"They need to know."

"You don't have to go in. But the Animus can be a good thing." Carrie said reaching out and touching Rita's hand in an attempt to comfort her, she had gained a lot more focus and improved her skills with it but Rita shook her head.

"For you perhaps, maybe for Sue but not for me." She said with an almost frightened look in her eyes that Carrie had never seen before. "Shay Cormac was the deadliest assassin hunter there has ever been. A die-hard Templar that was their greatest weapon and he never strayed from their cause even if it meant killing anyone that got in their way even his old friends. His memories...they could warp my mind. I don't know what might happen and I certainly don't want any of you to suffer." Rita said with worry that was motherly for them.

Carrie honestly didn't remember getting up and hugging Rita but she was glad she did as Rita hugged her back. Nor when Sue joined them but she was most welcome. Rita hugged both her girls although she had no idea when she had started to think about them like that.

"Thank you." She whispered in both their ears, hugging them both.

---

Assassin Hideout/Ranch, Venezuela...A Few Days Later...

Cal emerged from the Animus, the feeling of loss that his ancestor had felt when Maria had been killed was almost overwhelming and yet the strength of his conviction in making sure the apple did not fall into Templar hands...honestly it was beyond anything that he had felt before.

Was this what you felt mother? Cal asked himself as he sat up on the Animus, trying to sort his own thoughts and feelings out from those of Aguilar. The line between them seemed non-existent and he honestly had no idea just what to think or say any more.

"Now." Lara said with a small distant smile on her face. "He sees why we do what we do. We only seek the Apple so we can destroy it, so the information it contains can never threaten human kind again. We didn't know how to during Aguilar's time but we do now. Better than the Templars having it." Lara told him seeming like someone far older before handing him a folder.

"What's this?" Cal asked, still confused but glad that it was the intention to destroy it rather than risk the Templars getting their hands on it, after so many had died over it centuries ago Maria's face clearest in his mind.

"Your new identity with some cash to help you get started wherever you might be going." Lara said, still smiling before she added. "You held up your end of the bargain, we hold up ours. A new life for you...but first...he is here if you want to speak to him."

"Who?" Cal asked, not sure what she meant but with a strange look on her face, Lara just told him in a quiet voice.

"I think you know, if you want to see him, to ask him any questions or just to face him...that door on the right." Lara said pointing towards the door in question while Niska looked at them both with curiosity, wondering just what he would do.

Cal finally realised just who she meant and almost against his will he got up from the Animus with the folder still in hand. Niska looked at him with concern, not sure what was going to happen although Lara seemed too, giving him a sad smile.

Cal opened the door and it opened onto a veranda where a man with a cane was standing, a man Cal hadn't seen since he was a child. He was much older now with his hair white and his faced sagged not to mention cloudiness in his eyes revealing that he couldn't see but still Cal gritted his teeth and walked up to him.

Joseph seemed to hear him and he turned, facing his now adult son even if he couldn't see him. He didn't say anything but handed him something, a hidden blade Cal realised or at least a modern one and with a stab of anger Cal realised it was the same one that had killed his mother all those years ago. Cal took it and almost held it at his own father's throat.

"Why didn't you run?" He asked instead, not sure of who exactly he meant by that but Joseph seemed too.

"We had been surrounded, there was little time and your mother wanted to make sure they could never use her to find the apple, never put her in that machine. Neither of us had the heart to kill you but, at the time they didn't know about you so we counted our blessings. As for why I gave myself up...I deserved to suffer...for what happened." Joseph said with a voice that was heavy with regret. "Do what you have to do Cal, I won't fight it."

Cal was struck as he had the weapon in hand and moved the sharpened blade to his father's neck but when he went to slit the old man's throat...he found himself faltering. He had long lost any feeling for his father but knew that his mother wouldn't want him to do this not to mention now that he understood why. Lara had been right, Cal realised, he had the answers he wanted and they were nothing like he had expected.

Having seen the memories of Aguilar, knowing what they had been defending...Cal honestly wasn't sure if he wouldn't have done the same thing in their place. Ended his own life to protect it, not to mention he knew from his own experience that it was a far worse punishment to live with the things you'd done rather than be killed.

So, Cal didn't slit Joseph's throat, instead he took the blade away and said with a stern voice.

"I owe you nothing, not forgiveness nor release. You and I have nothing more to say to each other." Cal said and placed the blade back into his father's hand and Joseph seemed to hear him walk away and sighed with sadness before turning to a helper who led her away.

Cal was not sure why but he found himself back in the dining room where Benjamin Scott was sitting at the head of the table speaking to the others. They all stopped and looked at him with confusion. Benjamin stood up and asked him.

"If you want transport into town Mr Lynch we will need some time, right now we are planning our mission to retrieve the apple before destroying it." Benjamin said with the sternness of a very rigid school teacher but Cal told him while feeling a little nervous.

"I want to make sure; the apple is destroyed. So, if you will permit it, I'll stay around until then." Cal said.

Benjamin looked at him with a cold eye while some of the others studied him, Moussa smiled at him as did Lara and Sophie. Cal was grateful of their support and with a quick look around the room Benjamin realised some of his own people were in favour of it. He frowned for a moment before making his decision known.

"Very well, since without your co-operation we would be none the wiser as to its location. You can join the mission to retrieve and destroy it. Then we will go our separate ways and you can enjoy your freedom." Benjamin said sternly and Cal nodded in agreement, while not sure that was exactly what he wanted anymore.

---

Templar Inner Sanctum Base, Location Unknown…

The base of the Inner Sanctum was one of the best kept secrets in the Templar Order and while hopefully they could return to using the Astergo facilities that they still owned it was safer to stay where they were for now.

For Sofia who had grown up not only in the relative spotlight of being the Astergo CEO's daughter but then an award-winning doctor and scientist it was far from the relative luxury she was used too. Sofia swore not least to herself that she was not a snob and too used to the finer things in life but she was starting to realise after being deprived of those things for a while she had become...accustomed to them.

She was mortified and vowed to herself not to be so spoiled and ungrateful again as the Order was still reeling from the blow it had sustained and would take a long time to recover but being the newest member of the Inner Sanctum as she was now discovering did have some benefits.

Namely that she now had access to some of their secret files, ones that regular Templars would never see in a million years. Unfortunately, they included some of the more underhanded and vicious things the order had done throughout the centuries that even the Assassins probably didn't know about and Sofia was troubled as she read through them.

It disturbed her that such things had been done often for the Order's own gain more than the betterment of the human race however much she tried to convince herself that it all was the for the greater good she couldn't see how even in the long term. It just benefited some members of the order personally while not the order as a whole.

She sighed; she had hoped these files might help reconfirm her faith in the cause but instead she was undermining it with them. So, she then turned to the one file that she knew would remind her why the Order's cause was so important.

The investigation into her mother's murder.

She knew that the Assassins were responsible and what more she could gain from this apart from upsetting herself she wasn't sure, perhaps she thought to herself she might put a name to the face of her mother's killer...know just who had killed her kind, wonderful, loving mother so needlessly.

Her face was furious as she hit the keys on her keyboard with not only great speed but harder than she normally would with her rage stirring from the deep hole inside her where she buried it. It took the highly efficient computer system only a moment to find the files and bring them up.

The file was not an investigation report, that immediately made her stop with surprise. It was listed in a section marked 'Missions', under the Omega Team directory.

Sofia frowned; she knew that Omega team was the squad her father entrusted with particularly important missions that he would rather not give to Sigma Team. She shook herself and thought, they must have been the ones who were investigating and trying to find her mother's killer Sofia thought, shaking herself for being so foolish before opening the file and speed reading its contents.

The smile on her face though disappeared after a moment of absorbing the information in the file and a look of abject horror taking its place.

Her mother...wasn't dead.

She could hardly believe it; she didn't want to because if the report was accurate...if it was right Sofia thought almost shaking, then the reason she had grown up without her mother was that her father wanted her mother dead.

It was there, in plain unfeeling black script on the computer screen.

Her mother had been unaware of Alan Rikkin's affiliation with the Templar Order, just thinking him a business man who had some rather stern views of the world. She had married him and then Sofia had been born but somewhere along the line she had discovered the existence of the Templars and his own plans for their daughter. Her mother had been apparently horrified and wanted to leave and take Sofia with her but Alan had gotten wind of it sent Omega Team to have her killed so the Assassins could be blamed, making Sofia a die-hard Templar who sought to remove the thing that killed her mother.

And it had worked Sofia realised with her stomach churning and her head spinning, she had become a Templar at his urging to help purge the violence that had killed her mother. She had suppressed any rebellious tendencies and done exactly as he had taught her to do. She had devoted herself to the cause albeit not to the extremism that her father did. She fell from her chair and had to brace herself against the desk with her head in her hands from the shock of it.

However, she realised not everything had gone to plan. The Assassins had whisked her mother away and hidden her from her father, protecting her as they protected the apple that they had wanted Mr Lynch for. Sofia started to wonder if her father kept such a close eye on her and prevented her from making any friends and having distant nannies looking after her, not because he cared but instead, he was afraid that her mother might contact her and inform her of the truth and she might turn against the cause.

Become a spy for the Assassins against the Templars.

Sofia was struggling to comprehend all this, trying to make sense of the fact her entire world had been turned on its head and now nothing was true.

That line almost made her start as she knew it was part of the creed of the Assassins, she hated chaos but knew that it was an essential part of the development of any society. If there were no problems, a society would stagnate and wouldn't evolve before eventually dying out. How it dealt with the issues it faced changes the course of its development and shaped it into what it would become. So many times, through history societies made choices that could have sent it up very different paths if they had made different options.

Sofia tried to stop herself going deeper into that sociological debate as she brought herself back to the matter at hand and another very...disquieting thing Sofia had had learned from the file, something that her father kept hidden from even the other Templars.

Sofia...had Assassin blood in her.

She could hardly cope with what she had learned so far and now this! She thought with anger, throwing the keyboard across the room, shattering it against the wall to take her aggression out on. She almost felt horror at the random act of violence but then let out a bitter laugh, was that from her father or her mother's side? Was she any better than any other human with feelings? When had she begun to think of herself as better than other people?

The ability to be violent was a key defence mechanism, without it we would all be helpless in the face of threat wherever it came from Sofia realised as she had some kind of awakening.

Her mother had been descended from Assassins although she herself had been unaware of it, so therefore Sofia was too. Alan Rikkin of course had suppressed all knowledge of it, his own private shame and darkest secret...that his daughter was tainted by the blood of the Assassins. The potential of being rebellious was in her DNA and that was why she had never been allowed to enter the Animus herself...in case she found their way of seeing the world attractive.

She was honestly ready to collapse on the floor as her world fell in on itself, she slumped against the wall as she was unable to hold herself up right. Sofia curled up into the foetal position, in vain hope of shutting out the world and pretending this wasn't happening.

It was just as well no one was around as she struggled with her own feelings...but try as she might she just couldn't let this go. She couldn't just sweep it under the rug and pretend it never happened.

Pretend that she still had faith in the Father of Understanding.

Not now she understood just what kind of man her father was and what the Templars would be under him.

A part of her still wanted to believe in a better world and one without violence but that was she was starting to realise came at too high a price. She couldn't stand being here anymore she thought with a sudden desperation to literally be anywhere else but here...and as far from the Templars and her father as possible.

That decision made Sofia went back to her room, small though it was and packed some of her best nondescript clothes, a few false IDs that had been provided to her by the order and some money. She changed and slung her bag over her shoulder, taking one last look around before walking away. She was unchallenged as she left the facility, its security knowing never to question a member of the Inner Sanctum before disappearing into the night.

She needed to think, to be on her own for a while till she knew just what she wanted rather than her father...find out if she could do something in this world for herself rather than for the Order or for her father.

---

The Black Room, Animus…New York Assassin Safehouse...

Desmond, finally at the end of Ezio's and Altair's memories was reaching the stage when he was at last in sync and could hopefully get some answers.

He watched as Ezio spoke to him, not understanding how but knowing Desmond would one day be able to hear his words. That he was but the conduit for Desmond to hear through and to learn from. Ezio spoke of his own life and how he had lived as best he could even though many events outside his control and pulled him forward almost against his will but still, he had tried to live his life.

Then Desmond, in awe of what he was seeing stood in front of Ezio who put out his hand and touched Desmond on the shoulder. His world exploding in a blast of golden light.

- x -

In the real-world Rebecca who was monitoring Desmond's vitals and the Animus data saw a string of numbers appear at the same time there was a steady improvement in Desmond's stats.

"Hey guys!" She called out and the others hearing her ran up the stairs, not sure what had her so excited and Hannah was dearly hoping that Desmond was awake and was crestfallen when she saw he wasn't but Rita asked.

"What is it?" She wanted to know if things were getting better or worse. Rebecca said with a bit of excitement.

"Desmond's vitals are improving and at the same time the Animus threw up a bunch of numbers." She said and Shaun pushed past to see what they were, adjusting his glasses and he told them excitedly.

"Co-ordinates, to what I can't say but they aren't that far from the old Davenport Homestead." Shaun said, his mind excited by the connection. "Too close to be a coincidence."

"Ezio never came to America." William said with a look on his face as he considered what this might mean.

"Maybe the next clue or the answer comes in the Kenway line." Sue said with a smile, wondering just what part of history they were going to study next. She knew little of the Kenway line but it sounded exciting.

"So, let's load up the van. We need to check this out, the date of the solar flare is getting closer. Any lead needs to be checked out." Rita said with sigh, wondering or rather hoping that maybe they might at last find what they needed to stop this catastrophe before it got a chance to play out a second time.

Carrie while the others talked among themselves looked at Desmond and then to the case where the two apples they had were stored, she wondered privately if perhaps at long last she might get some answers of her own at this last stop before the potential end of the world.

- x -

Desmond meanwhile found himself with another ghost of the First Civilisation, this one a man named Jupiter. He was tall and regal not to mention seemed more friendlier than Minerva and was being told the story of their attempts to find the answer to the coming solar flare and what happened when it hit.

He saw to his horror what had occurred, the 'geomagnetic reversal' as Shaun had put it back in Rome when they had first discovered the potential danger. Desmond had seen on TV the devastation brought about by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions but seeing the destruction caused by the flare...it was something else he thought with horror.

The city, way more advanced than anything they had now levelled and torn apart in the space of moments. Buildings toppling over and crushing people while great rips in the ground opened up and swallowed people whole. A woman and her baby helpless as they were consumed by a massive fireball that tore its way through the area.

His mind was struggling to comprehend what he was seeing, not wanting to believe that such a devastating disaster could hit with so little warning and with so little that you could do to survive it. The idea of that happening again...Desmond thought with the coldest weight settling in the pit of his stomach was more than he could take.

"The earth shook for days. The fires burned for weeks. And when the ash had settled, less than ten thousand of your kind still lived...and far fewer of ours. But we carried on, together. To rebuild. To renew." Jupiter said as the blacked and scorched earth with so many bodies was all around them.

"Listen." Jupiter said, finally coming to the most important part of what he needed to tell Desmond who gave him his complete and undivided attention given what was at stake. "You must go there. To the place that we laboured...laboured and lost. Take my words. Pass them from your head into your hands. That is how you will open the way. But be warned: much still remains in flux. And I do not know how things will end – either in my time or yours." Jupiter said as images of a warping landscape filled Desmond's head and showed him a cave of some sort in the wilderness.

- x -

Back in the physical world, Desmond stirred in the Animus chair his body aching with disuse as he finally woke from his coma.

"Wait look!" Rebecca cried out as she stood around the Animus chair with William, Shaun, Hannah and Carrie, while Rita and Sue were up front driving the van. "His vitals are stabilising...something's happening. He's moving. He's moving!" Rebecca said with amazement as Desmond managed to move a little. Hannah knelt at his side and held his hand, her face coming alive as his hand squeezed hers and he opened his eyes...her face being the first thing he saw and a small smile coming to his face.

"Desmond? Can you hear me?" William asked, his face just for a moment twisted with worry as was Carrie who held his other hand tightly. She had never been more relieved as she felt his mind return from wherever it had gone and sighed, smiling as she glanced to the others who were almost as relieved as her or more so.

"Son?" William asked again, putting his hand on Desmond's shoulder and his face only inches away from Desmond's own.

Desmond, not seemingly truly with it yet looked around in a daze as his senses recovered. He held up his arm as the Apples nearby glowed in his presence and weird symbols appearing on Desmond's arms at the same time much to their surprise. Carrie felt a tingling on his own arms and pulled up her sleeves to see the same strange moving silently over her own arms and hands. None of them seemed to know just what this meant but Desmond, finally managing to speak for the first time in weeks said.

"I know what we need to do." His voice was tired and almost flat but there was a determination there, a new strength to see things through which Carrie felt with her powers and William with a worried expression on his face as they finally arrived at the co-ordinates the Animus had given them opened the doors of the trunk, revealing the cave in the distance.

---

There we are, sorry this took longer to write then I had hoped as I haven't completed Revelations and real-life stuff took over. I now have only one story left in this series, Assassin's Creed 3 where everything comes together.

Please review and let me know what you thought.